Actor Anthony Rapp spoke to interviewers about playing the first openly gay character on a Star Trek television series.

Rapp, who is himself gay, will play Lt. Stamets, a science officer aboard the USS Discovery in the upcoming Star Trek: Discovery.

“I’m really excited about it,” he told Metro Weekly. “I’m also honored to be a part of a piece of work that’s part of the cultural pantheon.”

Sulu was revealed to be gay one of the recent films, but Rapp’s character will be the first openly gay character on an ongoing Star Trek show.

The Star Trek franchise has always gently pushed progressive politics. In the 1960s, it was one of the first programs on American television that regularly featured a positive portrayal of a black character, Lt. Uhura. In the height of the Cold War, the show’s depiction of a multicultural, non-capitalist utopia was quietly subversive. And with the addition of Rapp’s character, we may finally get to see some of that Fully Automated Luxury Gay Space Communism the kids are so excited about these days.